December 2010 - arrl-odv - reflector.arrl.org

Re: ARRL Web Site Complaint
by Bob Vallio 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Dave, With all due respect, the issue here is not the length of time it takes for a page to load. The issue here is that the implementation of the Fathom-designed website is entirely inadequate to provide our members the service for which we paid far too much, and managed very poorly. It is now time to fix the problem, while in the meantime deferring the implementation of the several new projects in the 2011-2012 Plan to add an even larger load to an already sinking ship. There have already been too many dollars and staff hours spent in an attempt to hide the problem and deny it even existed. Additionally, as has been suggested by others, there is no telling how many dollars of sales revenues; and, lost members that can be attributed to this albatross around our neck. Our membership deserves to have a first-rate and functional website for their use. The sooner, the better. Bob Vallio, W6RGG On Sat, Dec 11, 2010 at 5:24 AM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ <dsumner(a)arrl.org>wrote: > Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy error > message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in my December 1 > status report: > > > The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber Monday, November > 29, and some members reported having difficulty with timeouts. It’s not > clear that all of this was the result of the load on the servers that now > host our website (we currently lease server space from Rackspace) but most > of it probably was. The 2011 Plan that the A&F Committee reviewed on > November 20 and is recommending to the Board for ratification includes > purchasing our own servers, which Jon Bloom believes will significantly > improve performance. > > > Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. > > Dave > > > ------------------------------ > *From:* dick(a)pobox.com [mailto:dick@pobox.com] > *Sent:* Fri 12/10/2010 10:31 PM > *To:* arrl-odv > *Subject:* ARRL Web Site Complaint > > 10 DEC 2010 - 1531 CST > > Here is another knowledgeable complaint about our new ARRL web site. I > have already replied to Tim, but if anybody else wants to chime in, be > my guest. > > Because of our ongoing web site problems, we are probably losing revenue > at this point... but we will never know the full extent of our losses. > > - Dick Isely, W9GIG > > ========================================================================== > Date: Fri, 03 Dec 2010 15:32:45 -0600 > From: Tim N9PUZ <tim.n9puz(a)gmail.com> > To: Dick Isely W9GIG <dick(a)pobox.com> > Subject: ARRL Web Site > Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed > Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit > > Dick, > > I just need to vent a little... > > I think the League would have a better, more reliable site if they > had hired a couple of high school kids to build it. > > I've been trying to spend money with them off and on for hours now. > Here's the result on multiple occasions today: > > Proxy Error > > The proxy server received an invalid response from an upstream server. > The proxy server could not handle the request GET /shop/Antennas/. > > Reason: Error reading from remote server > > Apache/2.2.3 (CentOS) Server at www.arrl.org Port 80 > > > I work in IT. It shouldn't be this bad after all the time (and > probably money) they've spent. > > Hope you and your family have a great Holiday season this year! > > Tim McDonough, N9PUZ > IL ARES Assistant SEC - Digital Operations > Sangamon County, Springfield, IL > > >

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Re: Mail Query
by Bob Vallio 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Thanks to all for their comments. I spent time chasing his name in various databases with no success. He is the author of the book reviewed in the article, and is apparently trying to boost sales! 73, Bob

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RE: ARRL Website Complaint....
by Cliff Ahrens 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Given the number of complaints about the Web server response time, and the increased usage of the Web site and ARRL store during the holiday season, should staff consider a temporary increase of the amount of server space being rented in the Rackspace cloud. As Dave noted, the 2011 Plan recommended to the Board by staff and the A&F committee includes purchasing 4 in-house Web servers at an approximate cost of $6,000, with a projected implementation at the end of the 1st Qtr 2011. The increased rental cost at Rackspace would be a short-term fix, pending the move to in-house servers. And maybe that move could be expedited as well. Cliff K0CA

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Re: ARRL Website Complaint....
by jfenster＠pacifier.com 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

I too had complaints from locals regarding the time it took to access the site if it worked at all. Jim K9JF > I'm not sure what is going on with the site today (Saturday) but I am > having problems connecting - it takes forever or it just hangs up in > limbo. I can connect to other sites and QRZ but not ARRL. This has > been going on for five or six hours. > > Frank...N2FF..... > > > On 12/11/2010 1:24 PM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote: >> Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy >> error message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in >> my December 1 status report: >> >> The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber Monday, >> November 29, and some members reported having difficulty with >> timeouts. It's not clearthatall of this was the result of the >> load onthe serversthat now host our website(we currently lease >> server space from Rackspace) but most of it probably was. The >> 2011 Planthat the A&F Committee reviewed on November 20 and is >> recommending to the Board for ratification includes purchasing >> our own servers, which Jon Bloom believes will significantly >> improve performance. >> >> Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. >> Dave >> >> > James E. Fenstermaker K9JF Director, Northwestern Division American Radio Relay League (206) 930-9372

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Re: ARRL Website Complaint....
by JRS 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Ladies and Gentlemen The website has been unresponsive over the past two days and I have been using Safari and Firefox. Probably just the gerbils in the cage getting slow. However, ordering at the ARRL store ranges from molasses to agonizing. For fun, go to the ARRL page, click on "ARRL Store" and attempt to order /ON4UN's Low Band Dxing/. Then go to Amazon.com, search for /ON4UN's Low Band Dxing, c/lick on the book when it is displayed, then click on "Available from these sellers," choose a seller and click "Add to Cart." Compare the Amazon exercise to the ARRL store. It is educational. Merry Christmas everyone! // 73 *-----------------------------------------------------* ** John Robert Stratton N5AUS West Gulf Division Vice Director West Gulf Division Legislative Action Chair Office telephone: 512-445-6262 Cell: 512-426-2028 PO Box 2232 Austin, Texas 78768-2232 *-----------------------------------------------------* On 12/11/10 8:11 PM, Jim Weaver K8JE wrote: > Frank, > Not so fast. I use ARRL.org as my home page. Just as I received your > latest message I was trying to go online via my Internet Explorer. > Two tries later I gave up -- same problem as you had experienced. > Jim > /Jim Weaver, K8JE, Director/ > /ARRL Great Lakes Division/ > 5065 Bethany Rd. > Mason, OH 45040; Tel. 513-459-1661 > /ARRL, The national association for Amateur Radio/ > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > *From:* Frank Fallon [mailto:n2ff@optonline.net] > *Sent:* Saturday, December 11, 2010 8:17 PM > *To:* arrl-odv > *Subject:* Re: ARRL Website Complaint.... > > Well, that was a fast reaction. > > As soon as I posted the message I went back online and was immediately > able to access the ARRL site and move around quite quickly. It > appears that things are back to normal. I hope. I am not sure was I > was not able to get in for almost six hours. > > 73 de Frank...N2FF...... > > > On 12/12/2010 1:08 AM, Frank Fallon wrote: >> I'm not sure what is going on with the site today (Saturday) but I am >> having problems connecting - it takes forever or it just hangs up in >> limbo. I can connect to other sites and QRZ but not ARRL. This has >> been going on for five or six hours. >> >> Frank...N2FF..... >> >> >> On 12/11/2010 1:24 PM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote: >>> Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy >>> error message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in >>> my December 1 status report: >>> >>> The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber >>> Monday, November 29, and some members reported having >>> difficulty with timeouts. It's not clearthatall of this was >>> the result of the load onthe serversthat now host our >>> website(we currently lease server space from Rackspace) but >>> most of it probably was. The 2011 Planthat the A&F Committee >>> reviewed on November 20 and is recommending to the Board for >>> ratification includes purchasing our own servers, which Jon >>> Bloom believes will significantly improve performance. >>> >>> Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. >>> Dave >>> >>> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com <http://www.avg.com> > Version: 10.0.1170 / Virus Database: 426/3309 - Release Date: 12/11/10 >

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RE: ARRL Website Complaint....
by Jim Weaver K8JE 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Frank, Not so fast. I use ARRL.org as my home page. Just as I received your latest message I was trying to go online via my Internet Explorer. Two tries later I gave up -- same problem as you had experienced. Jim Jim Weaver, K8JE, Director ARRL Great Lakes Division 5065 Bethany Rd. Mason, OH 45040; Tel. 513-459-1661 ARRL, The national association for Amateur Radio _____ From: Frank Fallon [mailto:n2ff@optonline.net] Sent: Saturday, December 11, 2010 8:17 PM To: arrl-odv Subject: Re: ARRL Website Complaint.... Well, that was a fast reaction. As soon as I posted the message I went back online and was immediately able to access the ARRL site and move around quite quickly. It appears that things are back to normal. I hope. I am not sure was I was not able to get in for almost six hours. 73 de Frank...N2FF...... On 12/12/2010 1:08 AM, Frank Fallon wrote: I'm not sure what is going on with the site today (Saturday) but I am having problems connecting - it takes forever or it just hangs up in limbo. I can connect to other sites and QRZ but not ARRL. This has been going on for five or six hours. Frank...N2FF..... On 12/11/2010 1:24 PM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote: Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy error message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in my December 1 status report: The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber Monday, November 29, and some members reported having difficulty with timeouts. It's not clear that all of this was the result of the load on the servers that now host our website (we currently lease server space from Rackspace) but most of it probably was. The 2011 Plan that the A&F Committee reviewed on November 20 and is recommending to the Board for ratification includes purchasing our own servers, which Jon Bloom believes will significantly improve performance. Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. Dave _____ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 10.0.1170 / Virus Database: 426/3309 - Release Date: 12/11/10

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Re: ARRL Website Complaint....
by Frank Fallon 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

Well, that was a fast reaction. As soon as I posted the message I went back online and was immediately able to access the ARRL site and move around quite quickly. It appears that things are back to normal. I hope. I am not sure was I was not able to get in for almost six hours. 73 de Frank...N2FF...... On 12/12/2010 1:08 AM, Frank Fallon wrote: > I'm not sure what is going on with the site today (Saturday) but I am > having problems connecting - it takes forever or it just hangs up in > limbo. I can connect to other sites and QRZ but not ARRL. This has > been going on for five or six hours. > > Frank...N2FF..... > > > On 12/11/2010 1:24 PM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote: >> Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy >> error message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in >> my December 1 status report: >> >> The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber Monday, >> November 29, and some members reported having difficulty with >> timeouts. It's not clearthatall of this was the result of the >> load onthe serversthat now host our website(we currently >> lease server space from Rackspace) but most of it probably >> was. The 2011 Planthat the A&F Committee reviewed on November >> 20 and is recommending to the Board for ratification includes >> purchasing our own servers, which Jon Bloom believes will >> significantly improve performance. >> >> Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. >> Dave >> >>

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Re: ARRL Website Complaint....
by Frank Fallon 12 Dec '10

12 Dec '10

I'm not sure what is going on with the site today (Saturday) but I am having problems connecting - it takes forever or it just hangs up in limbo. I can connect to other sites and QRZ but not ARRL. This has been going on for five or six hours. Frank...N2FF..... On 12/11/2010 1:24 PM, Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ wrote: > Dick, the issue here is the time it takes to load a page. The proxy > error message is the result of it taking too long. I covered this in > my December 1 status report: > > The ARRL Web store experienced heavy traffic on Cyber Monday, > November 29, and some members reported having difficulty with > timeouts. It's not clearthatall of this was the result of the > load onthe serversthat now host our website(we currently lease > server space from Rackspace) but most of it probably was. The > 2011 Planthat the A&F Committee reviewed on November 20 and is > recommending to the Board for ratification includes purchasing > our own servers, which Jon Bloom believes will significantly > improve performance. > > Jon Bloom is looking into other solutions. > Dave > >

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Re: Mail Query
by dick＠pobox.com 11 Dec '10

11 Dec '10

11 DEC 2010 - 14113 CST I was not going to mention that I also received the SPAM message about the new book on Marconi. But since somebody was wondering how our email addresses were mined, the answer is simple. They are published in QST every month. Even a non-ham can quickly figure out the common domain name suffix and quickly generate the email addresses by hand. I have not looked at our on-line QST archive, but if each QST issue is a page by page file, the right software can easily extract our email addresses. This is one of the small crosses we all have to bear. I average about five spam email messages a week addressed to w9gig(a)arrl.org. Since I can't block the domain suffix, I eventually take the time to sort out the true originating email address of the persistent repeat spam messages and block it on my ISP's email server. - Dick, W9GIG

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RE: Mail Query
by Grant Hopper 11 Dec '10

11 Dec '10

I did too. I assumed he had simply mined all the arrl.org addresses from somewhere. Grant -----Original Message----- From: Bob Vallio [mailto:rbvallio@gmail.com] Sent: Friday, December 10, 2010 1:21 AM To: arrl-odv Subject: Mail Query I recently received an e-mail from Cam Trowbridge, and am wondering if any of the others on this list have received mail from him.. Thanks, Bob -- W6RGG

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